Where the work is posted
- MERX: the Province of Manitoba, Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure, Manitoba Housing and, since 1 March 2025, the City of Winnipeg.
- Bids&Tenders: the Manitoba Water Services Board and a number of municipalities.
- Bonfire: Shared Health Manitoba and some other public bodies.
- CanadaBuys: federal work in Manitoba, such as Parks Canada and National Defence.
- Directly from the owner: First Nations, smaller towns and school divisions may post on their own site, advertise in the paper or invite contractors they know.
What you usually need before you bid
Every tender sets its own list, so read it first. These come up most often in Manitoba construction work:
- A Certificate of Recognition (COR) or a stated safety program. Many public owners ask for it on construction work, and earning one takes months, so don't wait for a tender to start.
- A clearance letter from the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba showing your account is in good standing.
- Bid security: usually a bid bond or a certified cheque, plus an agreement to bond. Talk to your surety broker early.
- Insurance at the limits the tender states, often with the owner named as an additional insured.
- A site visit, if the tender makes it mandatory. Missing a mandatory one normally ends your bid.
- References for similar work, if the tender scores experience.
How to send your bid
Follow the tender, not the portal's habits. Some Manitoba bids are sent through MERX and some go directly to the buyer named in the notice. The instructions to bidders say which, and a late bid is refused.
Leave yourself time. An electronic portal closes to the second. Try uploading well before the deadline, so a problem with a file or a login still leaves you time to fix it.
Before you press send
- You acknowledged every addendum on the bid form.
- Every required form is filled in and signed.
- Your bid security matches the amount and the form the tender asks for.
- You filled in every line of the schedule of prices, and the total adds up.
- You bid on the buyer's own form, without added conditions, unless the tender allows them.
If you are bidding as a subcontractor
Most mechanical, electrical and finishing work on a public building reaches you through a general contractor. Read the specification sections for your trade and every addendum, and state plainly what your price includes and leaves out. Send your quote ahead of the trade closing the general contractor sets.
Where BidCaliper fits
BidCaliper was built in Winnipeg. It can't copy listings from MERX, so forward the MERX notices you receive to your company's BidCaliper address. Each one is checked against your trades, certificates, bonding and travel, along with the federal work in Manitoba.